Kroger ain't in an acquirin' sort of mood, at least not in adjacent territories such as ours (they're in Ohio, which we can say is adjacent, seeing as how it butts New York state and all). (EDIT: Sorta. You still have to clip through PA., dude)

At least one of our regional chains had a face-to-face with Kroger -- and lost. Syracuse's The Penn Traffic Co., the parent of P&C Foods, once had a supermarket division called Big Bear, and it operated in Ohio... Kroger country.

You connect the dots. And really... You have lists of supermarket chains???

End the "hunch" part of my work, Scotty (harsh!). On to letting the readers do the work, right?

So on to...

E-mail.

* eyeonFL comments, "Bob -- This past weekend I went down to Long Island for a birthday party and visited one of my favorite restaurants for lunch. Houston's!!!! What a great place! Any news on whether we would ever get one here (preferably in the eastern suburbs)? What about the P.F. Chang's cafeteria-style concept that I've seen in Lake Worth, Fla.? Thanks."

No problem. I haven't heard any buzz from my SOURCES about Houston's. As you'll see in Store Front in Wednesday's P-S, some other restaurant names are popping up thanks to L.L. Bean's announcement. The Beaner will be a big driver of retail biz into the eastern suburbs, you bet. There was already a long list of restaurants seeking vantage points in that part of the county. L.L. Bean and whatever Macerich might do at ShoppingTown will be a huge boost and will likely make that line longer.

As for the Chang's concept, it's just a concept, or prototype, that they're working on. Let 'em perfect it before a wider rollout.

* cnycusecny comments, "Any news on the new store moving into Western Lights plaza? I've heard hardware store but not sure of the name. Thanks! Keep up the good work on the Video Blogs... the humor is there, don't change a thing!"

Thanks! Yes, news in Wednesday's P-S vis a vis the new hardware store in Western Lights. As for the Store Front videos, I'll keep marching forward while taking the hits. Maybe a vid this week? Don't know. Some marching orders are changing here at The P-S...

* NYCO comments, "The B&W Fairmount Fair sign is not the original sign... I personally don't have any nostalgia for it... but I would have been up in arms if Benderson changed the NAME of the plaza.The new sign seems very small, however."

Could be a zoning reg that wasn't in place old skool.

* imd1 comments, "The L.L. Bean opening is great news. I live down the road and it will be more convenient for me to buy and return items. I think the store will do very well and is a good re-use for the building. Does anyone know what is going into the former Chase-Pitkin in DeWitt?"

Re: Chase-Pitkin, that's rehashed in Wednesday's SF in The P-S (hint: furniture store). On the Beaner, I think you will be even more pleasantly surprised about the store once it arrives. Been to Bean outlets in Maine and? They rock.

Shoppers arrive on the opening day of the L.L. Bean store in Burlington, Mass., in September. The store, the first L. L. Bean retail store in that state, is part of the largest expansion project in the Freeport, Maine, company's 95-year history. Towne Center at Fayetteville is getting a much smaller version and a different model -- an outlet store, the first in THIS state. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)

* izzzalot comments, "This isn't the same type of store that is opening at the Colonie Center is it? That seems like more a destination, this seems like more of a convenience."

This outlet Beaner model pales in comparison to full-line L.L. Bean stores, like the one opening in the fall in Colonie Center near Albany. The Towne Center store, at 15,000-square-feet, won't be that much of a destination store, but I can assure you that people will travel long distances to partake of F'ville's Bean -- much as many folks from our parts travel to the Rochester market (sorry -- I had Albany in here earlier) to hit the Land's End outlet. Only the Beaner outlet will have more cool toys.

* imd1 comments, "It looks like Macerich is really writing off ShoppingTown and positioning themselves for a sale of the property. A high-end retailer and state-of-the art cinema complex would cement a sizeable market share increase for the company."

True that.

Regal had plans to put a new 'plex in, and at one time, there was Macerich (and before them, Wilmorite) jawing about high-end retailers needed for S'town. As it is with the other big developer in town, I don't believe anything until steel is in the ground and done deals are announced. We've got too much hot air and not enough building.

Sell S'Town? That was a hot rumor when Macerich bought the Wilmorite portfolio. Is it surfacing again?